Local Pension Board
The role of the board is to assist the Croydon Pension Fund comply with all the legislative requirements to ensure the scheme is being effectively and efficiently governed and managed.
As a result of changes to governance arrangements to pension schemes in the public sector, the Croydon Council as an administering authority for the LGPS is required to have in place a local pension board. The role of the board is to ensure the Croydon pension fund complies with all the legislative requirements and to make sure the scheme is being effectively and efficiently governed and administered.
The board members work with the Council in its role as an administering authority and the pension fund's officers to ensure that your pension scheme is being run properly and that you as a member get the best service.
To comply with requirements imposed by regulations which are enforced by the Pensions Regulator, the members of the local pension board are required to have the relevant experience and be available to attend meetings. In order to do this they must undertake training to maintain their knowledge and understanding of the LGPS and pensions in general.
The board must have an equal number of employer representatives and scheme member representatives. The Croydon Pension fund has three of each. We have also appointed an independent expert to oversee the board's matters
Scheme member and employer representatives are appointed to the board for a term of 2 years, the term of office for the independent member is determined by the Council.
Board members
Mr Michael Ellsmore (Independent Non-Voting Chair)
Mike was, until he retired in 2014, Director of Finance and Resources for the London Borough of Bexley, having worked in local government finance for 40 years. He is a qualified accountant, and a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (Cipfa). He is a former chair of Cipfa's Pensions Panel.
Since retiring, Mike has been appointed chair of the pension boards at the London Boroughs of Croydon and Southwark. He also chairs a mental health charity in Bexley (Centrepieces) and chairs Faversham Pools which also operates as a charity. He is a non- executive director of a local authority housing company, Bexleyco.
Scheme member representatives (voting members)
Mr David Whickman
David was, until he retired from Croydon Council in 2017, an Enforcement Officer attached to the dog section, for 29 years. He is still an active member for Unite the Union and was Lead Rep for his last few years whilst working for Croydon Council. He was appointed onto the Croydon Pensions Board in 2015 to represent Union members from Unite.
Ms Ava Payne
Ava is the GMB Union Branch Secretary (C60 Croydon) and Corporate Staff Side Lead for Croydon Council representing the interests of union members. She negotiates with senior management teams to secure fair pay and working conditions and provides advice and support to union members on employment-related issues.
She strives to develop and maintain effective working relationships with management and other stakeholders, such as the Pension Board, to promote constructive dialogue and collaboration. Additionally, she develops and implements strategies to promote union membership and engagement among employees as well as participating in the development of policies and procedures related to employment and labour relations. She stays up to date on trends and developments in employment law.
Ava previously worked for the Financial Ombudsman Service and has general experience of workplace and personal pensions, from a complaints point of view.
Ms Teresa Fritz
Teresa has worked for the financial services industry for over 40 years in various roles, but for the last 25 years has specialised as a consumer advocate. She has been a Member Representative of the Croydon Pension Board since 2015 and is also a Governor of the Pensions Policy Institute; a Member of the Financial Oversight Panel for the government endorsed quality scheme, Trustmark, and a volunteer for Citizens Advice.
In recent years Teresa has held senior roles with the Money & Pensions Service; the Financial Services Authority Consumer Panel; the consumer organisation, Which? and the pension provider Royal London.
Employer representatives (voting members)
Mr Richard Elliott
Richard is a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) with over 30 years’ experience as Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary of medium sized not-for-profit organisations, including English National Ballet, Girlguiding and Drinkaware.
He was also a Trustee of the Dancers’ Pension Scheme from 1995 to 2003.
He was Director of Finance of The BRIT School until 2019, and it was in this capacity that he was elected as an employers’ representative on the Local Pension Board in 2015.
He now pursues a career as an interim charity Finance Director.
Councillor Margaret Bird
Cllr Bird’s career started in banking and progressed to finance for an insurance broker, a pensions manager, political compliance and to being elected as a Councillor and now a Deputy Cabinet member for Adult Social Care & Health.
She always prides herself in doing the best she can in any role.